Inasmuch as the present invention has particular application to the field of insulating glass, particular reference will be made thereto.
Insulating glass is normally formed of two or more sheets of glass joined together about their periphery by means of a sealant strip between these sheets. Conventional sealant strips are typically formed of a body of e.g. solid butyl rubber which may or may not include a metal reinforcement within the body. In other cases, sealant strips may also be formed of an extruded foam material of a synthetic nature and which typically must include a moisture and air impermeable thin backing of e.g. Mylar.TM. applied by adhesive to two or three sides of the strip.
In the teachings of the prior art, several steps are required to form an insulated glass assembly. Generally, prior art arrangements involve placing a removable spacer between opposed substrates, injecting a sealant therebetween, allowing the sealant to cure and finally removing the spacer means. In application where permanent spacers are used, an adhesive must be applied thereto to secure the same between the sheets, the spacer is then placed therebetween and a sealant injected into the periphery formed between the edges of the glass and the spacer. In addition, desiccants are often included in the sealant material, which has been found to have limitations in effective moisture absorbing between the sheets.
It is apparent that the prior art practices are labour intensive, messy and provide many opportunities for ineffective construction of insulated glass assemblies.